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CULTURAL APPROPRIATION

After the discomfort expressed by the Fijian people over the trademark ‘Bula’, their national greeting registered by a coffee shop in Florida, the Kenyan people are showing their anger over the trademark “Hakuna Matata” registered by Walt Disney for their Lion King merchandise.

The phrase “Hakuna Matata” literally means “no problems” or “no worries” in Swahili and is a common phrase throughout East Africa.

However, to the rest of the world, the phrase is popular as the title song of Lion King and Walt Disney applied for its registration way back in 1994to protect the phrase from being printed on T-Shirts.

Some Kenyan newspapers have accused the company of stealing from Kenyan culture by claiming ownership of the phrase.

Several organizations have expressed utter disgust on Disney’s move even though it had a specific business goal and just covers T-shirts. Some have also compared it to trademarking the terms ‘good morning’ and said that these are common phrases used daily and no company can own it.

Petitions are now being signed all over the country to stop Disney from owning the words. This will probably act as a wake-up call for the African governments to take stronger steps to protect African culture.